Echo of the Heart
by taiyakisoba
Summary: While lost in the woods you're led to the safety of Myouren temple by a beautiful voice. There you encounter its owner, the shy but cheerful yamabiko, Kasodani Kyouko. Love soon blossoms between you and the little youkai, but will her dedication to the temple as an acolyte of the strict monk Byakuren Hijiri crush your romance before it even has a chance to begin?
1. Chapter 1

**Echo of the Heart** by taiyakisoba

**Part 1**

Dry pine-needles crackle beneath your feet as you walk up to the cedar-tree and run your fingers across the X scratched in its trunk.

Yup, no mistaking it. It's the tree you marked an hour ago. You're going around in circles.

You sigh, rest your hand against the tree and stare up into the patch of exquisite blue sky peeping between the great green branches arching over your head. Gensoukyou's beauty is just as breathtaking as the first time you laid eyes on it, but like they warned you in the Human Village, it's as deadly as it is beautiful.

How you got so lost you really have no idea. You heard there was a Buddhist temple around here somewhere and decided to use you day off to visit it, but one wrong turn on a path through this forest has left you hopelessly lost. You've no idea how long you've been wondering around, but based on the deepening of the sky's blue, it must have been most of the day.

You turn and slump your back against the trunk of the tree. You really should conserve your energy. Even though you must be somewhere close to the Human Village or the temple, it's no guarantee that the place is not crawling with hungry youkai. A week doesn't go by without someone from the village disappearing, and it's usually a new arrival, either through arrogance or naivety deciding that the youkai threat is an exaggeration. True, there are a lot of tame youkai who visit the village, that pretty fox-woman for example, but like Reimu, the miko of Hakurei shrine, warned you, even those tame youkai can be dangerous at times.

You close your eyes and let your other senses take over. The pine-freshness of the cedar's trunk and the needles around your feet infuses you and you feel a little calmer. The scratchiness of the rough bark at your back is pleasant as well, and you feel sleep starting to steal over you. Maybe just a few moments of shutting your eyes. Once you get your energy back, you'll get up and make another attempt to find your way out of the forest.

The sounds of the forest lull you further, the gentle song of birds and the shimmering of the leaves in a warm and zephyrous breeze.

You jerk awake in alarm. You had no idea you'd fallen asleep. You stand up and look around in a sudden panic.

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid! A youkai could easily have stolen up to you and devoured you.

Nothing. There's no sign of any change in the forest around you. The branches of the cedar scrape together, but that's the only sound you can hear beyond the pumping of your own blood and the slight whispering of your clothes as you shift about nervously.

Then you realise what's wrong. The birds have stopped their chirping. Silence reigns across the forest.

It's then that you hear the singing. At first you think you're imagining it, it's so soft and faint, like a person singing under their breath far in the distance. You can't make out the words, but from the high, crystal tones of it you decide it must be a girl who's singing.

As the breeze shifts around, the singing gets a little louder. You start to think you can actually make out words, but it's not in any language you know.

_Gyatei gyatei haragyatei harasougyatei boji sowaka..._

You stand there, rooted to the spot as you listen. It's so strange and beautiful, those elfin tones. Who's singing, you wonder. A human or maybe a youkai? There are many youkai who sing, after all. But the sound is so sad and exquisite and fragile that you can't believe a youkai is making it.

It must be someone from the Village, you decide. You brush off the pine-needles that have settled on your clothes while you were listening and wait until the breeze carries it to you again. When it finally does, you start to follow it.

Hope surges up in your chest. If whoever's singing keeps it up, you'll be able to find your way out of the forest in no time. You pray that they don't stop and quickly break into a jog.

You follow the gorgeous melody in one direction and then another. It's easier said than done to follow a sound, you discover. The breeze makes it more difficult, since it makes the notes now fainter, now louder, disorienting you.

But now the song is getting louder - you're definitely heading in the right direction. You can hear the sounds clearly, now, and you realise the sounds are Japanese, although the words they make seem to have no meaning. It doesn't matter, though. The sound of that voice is just so beautiful that it could be reading out a shopping-list for all you care.

The forest is growing lighter now, the spaces between the trees wider. You pass the stump of a tree and decide that you must be somewhere close to human habitation now. And just in time, as the voice seems to be coming to the end of its song.

And then it finally stops. But just ahead of you, you can see the beginnings of a high-eaved building. It's not somewhere you recognise, and as you get closer you realise it's a temple.

Not just any temple. Myouren temple. You were far more lost than you thought, then.

Myouren-ji. The temple of Hijiri Byakuren, the beautiful and mysterious youkai monk who settled here in order to spread her message of youkai-human peace.

You sigh in relief. The place is crawling with youkai, but youkai who have made an oath to protect humans. You're in a safe place, probably the safest place in Gensoukyou for humans after the Village and the Hakurei shrine.

But then, that beautiful voice...?

As you approach the edge of the trees you can hear the soft slap of shoes on pavement and the rhythmic swish-swish of someone brushing. Then the singing starts up again.

Ah, so the singer is someone from the temple. Probably a monk, then. That would explain why you don't understand the words of her song. It's most likely the ancient Sanskrit of a sutra, seemingly meaningless but supposedly holding within itself the meaning and keys to enlightenment.

You've heard sutras before, but never sung like this. The usual hypnotic drone of a monk's chant, repeated over and over again to bring about emptiness of the mind has been replaced by the gentle melodic sadness of a classically-trained singer.

You stop and listen. Whoever it is, their voice is so exquisite you feel tears start at the corners of your eyes. It must belong to some beauty, one of the youkai-monks or perhaps even the gorgeous Byakuren Hijiri herself.

The singing and sweeping grows louder. Whoever it is, they're coming your way.

You step off the path and stand there, waiting, feeling like an intruder in this calm and beautiful place. Then the owner of the voice comes around the side of one of the buildings. It's not Byakuren or one of the other monks.

It's a girl. She's very small, with blue-green hair and wearing a pale pink dress with a white underskirt. Her large teal eyes are glued to the pavement as she sweeps the broom in her hands with methodical precision, singing with that beautiful voice all the while. But it's the little floppy ears on top of her head and the energetic tufted tail swinging back and forth in opposite time like a metronome to each sweep of the broom that surprise you the most: she's a yamabiko, one of the mountain youkai the villagers warned you about. They mimic echoes to lead you deeper into the mountains where they capture and devour you.

Looking at her now, though, as she concentrates on her sweeping, that gorgeous, melodious voice clear and pure in your ears, you can't imagine how she could be dangerous.

She's almost on top of you when you finally step forward and greet her. She stops sweeping and singing all at once and takes a step back, her eyes widening in surprise, but then a timid smile appears on her face.

"Oh, a human? Welcome to the Myouren temple!" She bows, dropping her broom in the process and it falls to the cobblestones with a loud clatter. She hastily bends over to pick it up again, a shy apologetic look on her face as she does so.

"Sorry," she says. "I'm still learning how to sweep properly. I'm not very good at it yet."

You apologise for distracting her from her singing and she flushes deep red.

"You heard me singing?" Her green eyes glisten with shame. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Did it bother you? I'm not supposed to sing while I'm engaged in my acolyte duties."

You laugh and shake your head, telling her that you think her singing is very beautiful. In fact, it might have saved your life, since it helped you to find the temple when you were lost in the forest.

The yamabiko stares at you and you wonder if you've said something wrong. Then she lowers her eyes, and somehow her already flushed face turns an even deeper red. "Beautiful? Oh, I don't know about that..."

When she makes no move to look back up, you decide that maybe introducing yourself might dissolve the awkwardness of the scene. It does the trick and the yamabiko lifts her face, her mouth an O of surprise.

"Oh, of course. I forgot to introduce myself as well. My name is Kyouko and I'm an acolyte here at the temple. But I already mentioned that, didn't I?"

You ask her about the sweeping. "It's one of the duties of an acolyte. Actually, it seems like it's the only duty I have." She smiles. "Lady Byakuren says that it helps build discipline and allows the mind to find a state of calmness and peace. I think I'm pretty bad at it, though."

You ask her why she thinks that.

She blinks at you. Perhaps she's surprised that someone is interested enough to ask her more about it. "Well, while I'm doing it I can't stop thinking about how much I enjoy it. And then I start singing even before I notice it." She smiles shame-facedly. "Like I said, I'm not supposed to sing. Lady Byakuren says that music causes turmoil in the heart and distracts from the dharma. And so I keep trying to recite the mantras instead, but no matter how hard I try they always turn into a song!"

"So that was a mantra I hear you singing before?" you ask.

She nods. "The heart mantra. It's my favourite. It goes _Gyatei gyatei haragyatei harasougyatei boji sowaka._ I think it's very pretty."

You agree and ask her what it means.

"No one knows," she says. "I think maybe it doesn't mean anything. It's just to help clear your mind of thoughts, but I don't seem to be able to do it right." She begins to repeat it under her voice, over and over, but almost as soon as she does, the words lose their droning cant and begin to reform into the melody she was singing before. Kyouko stops mid-mantra, exasperated.

"See?"

"Kyouko?"

It's a voice from nearby, a feminine voice, softly-spoken and warm but somehow imperious for all that.

The yamabiko's big green eyes grow wide. "It's Lady Byakuren! You have to get out of here."

"Why?"

"She'll probably scold you as well if she sees you with me." The look on her face is chagrined. "She's _always_ scolding me."

The little youkai grabs your hand and pulls you away from the path and pushes you behind a series of ojizousan statues while you protest weakly.

"Please," says Kyouko. "After she goes I'll tell you how to get back to the village. But trust me, you really don't want Lady Byakuren to scold you. She can be really scary at times."

The little creature is so flustered that you decide to go along with things to avoid causing a scene. She runs back onto the path to retrieve her broom and it's then that Lady Byakuren appears from behind the same annexe that Kyouko came around just a few minutes earlier.

Byakuren Hijiri, the youkai monk. You've heard the name and the stories, but seeing her in the flesh is altogether different. She's tall, over six foot, and easily towers over little Kyouko who can't be more than five foot tall herself. Her gradient hair is striking, and combined with the beatific exquisite perfection of her features, she appears almost divinely beautiful. Her clothes, however, are not those you would expect a monk to wear: her dress draws attention to her statuesque form, the criss-cross of ribbons along her legs and across her more than ample bust making the first impression one of vibrant sexiness.

But then, you remember, the lady Byakuren is no ordinary monk: her desire for eternal youth, powered by a dark and nameless magic, and her thousand-year imprisonment in the depths of Makai have made her more youkai than human now.

"Kyouko," she says as she stops before the little yamabiko, looking down at her with a gentle smile on her face. "You're no longer sweeping? Are you tired, perhaps?"

Her voice rings with warmth, and yet, there's something in the way that Kyouko looks up to her, an almost fearful reverence and love on her face, that makes you wonder at what seems to be an unspoken threat in her words.

"I'm sorry, Lady Byakuren," says Kyouko, dropping her gaze. "I... I _am_ a little tired."

"My child," says the monk, still smiling as she shakes her head. "I know the ways of an acolyte can be difficult - they always are to those who especially enslaved to the desires of this world. But it is only through ignoring the body and mind's constant carping and demands that we may take our first faltering steps on the dharma."

"I... I will try my best, Lady Byakuren."

"That is all that I have ever asked, Kyouko," says Byakuren. "But it is very hard to do your best if you continue to distract yourself with frivolous pursuits."

Kyouko blinks. "Lady Byakuren?"

"I heard you singing again," says the monk. "Have you forgotten my teaching on the subject?"

Kyouko shakes her head. She glances up at Byakuren then stares down at the pavement at her feet, her gaze drilling into it with deep shame as she says, as if reciting a lesson often repeated, "'Singing incites the heart and inflames the soul. Recite the sutras and only then feel peace.'"

Byakuren nods and lifts Kyouko's chin so that their gazes meet. The little creature's eyes are already glowing with adoration but when Byakuren starts to stroke Kyouko's hair between her two floppy ears, the look on the yamabiko's face turns to one of ecstasy.

"Come, Kyouko," says the monk, putting her hand on her shoulder. "Return to your sweeping. And let us hear no more of that frivolous music. Recite the sutras..."

"...and be at peace," repeats Kyouko. She nods, a determined look on her face. "I will, Lady Byakuren."

The monk turns and walks back the way she came. You wait until her footsteps recede before you come out from your hiding place behind the ojizousan.

Kyouko starts, as if seeing you for the first time, but then she smiles, guilty. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I promised I'd show you the way, didn't I?" She seems confounded for a moment, as conflicting demands vie inside her. "I should fulfil my promise to you first," she finally decides. "But we have to go quickly. I don't want to disappoint Lady Byakuren again." She glances at you, shame on her face. "You... you see what I mean about her, right?"

You nod. But as Kyouko leads you through along a path through the temple complex, you tell her that you feel Byakuren was being a bit unfair to her.

Kyouko stops and looks at you, confusion on her face. "Why do you say that?" she asks.

You explain that it's all very well for Byakuren to preach about the importance of the avoidance of desire, but she's guilty of it herself from all you've heard about her obsession with eternal youth.

Kyouko shakes her head. "Oh, but it's different from what you say. The Lady Byakuren could have attained nirvana, but she chose to stay here to teach others the dharma. That's the reason for her seeking eternal life."

You know better than to argue with her. You spend the rest of the walk asking about the temple and Kyouko is more than pleased to explain everything you see. Finally, the path you're following takes you to the edge of the temple precinct and Kyouko stops.

"If you follow the path, it will take you straight back to the human village. It's usually very safe, since it's guarded, but sometimes a hostile youkai can appear, so please be careful. I... I don't want you to get eaten, after all. Especially after you were so kind to me."

Kyouko blushes and for a moment you feel a terrible sense of regret that Byakuren appeared when she did. You'd very much have liked to have talked to this gentle and pretty little youkai a lot longer, but the silence has already started to become awkward. You thank her again for her help and turn and start down the path.

You've some way down it when Kyouko suddenly shouts "Wait!" It's surprisingly loud from such a little creature, but then, she is a yamabiko after all. You turn to see her running down the path towards you.

She's puffing when she reaches you. "Ah, you said you enjoy the sutras, right?"

You tell her that you do, although you decide not to tell her that it was her own particular version that you liked.

"Oh, you do! Well, tomorrow night Lady Byakuren is holding her Concert for the Recitation of the Sutra. It goes all night and Lady Byakuren recites the sutras while keeping time on a wooden fish."

Keeping time on a wooden fish? Sounds terrible, but of course you don't say anything like that.

"I don't know," says Kyouko. "But maybe you'd like to come and listen? It's very popular amongst humans and youkai and I'll be there and..." Her voice drops away and she looks so suddenly shy and vulnerable that you say you'll be there without even thinking.

Kyouko looks up at you through dark lashes. A delighted smile has appeared on her face. "Oh, you will?" She claps her hands in delight. "Oh, how wonderful! I'm sure you'll really enjoy it..."

There's the call of a crow from over the temple and the harsh sound seems to remind Kyouko of the duties she's shirking. She grabs up her broom and with a series of bows she apologises for having to rush away and then turns and hurries back down the path towards the temple.

You watch her go, and you can't help but melt a little inside when you see that her little tufted tail is wagging happily back and forth as she runs.

* * *

><p>The next day passes agonisingly slowly. All you can think about is tonight's concert. You find yourself spending an inordinate amount of time getting yourself ready, something you never really do, especially since you've come to this strange and unpredictable land of Gensoukyou.<p>

Your heart is racing as you walk along the path to the temple. For once, there are a lot of people following it, and not just people, either. There's rustling among the trees just off the path, and you can see the fleeting shadows and glowing eyes of who-knows-what youkai shadowing you. But for once, there's no reason to panic: they're all going to the same place you are, and for the same reason. Byakuren's concert is one of the few opportunities humans in Gensoukyou have of interacting with youkai without having to be afraid of being eaten. Under the protection of the Saint of Purity humans and youkai can be at peace, if only for one night.

Byakuren's aim at bringing the two species together is laudable, there's no denying it. She's one of the few youkai loved by the humans of the village rather than just respected. And yet, the way she treated Kyouko still rankles you. She spoke softly and her words were kind, and yet... Maybe it was just the way she loomed over the little youkai, the inexorable demand in her hazel eyes. Why is it that tall, busty women are always so quick to use their beauty to bully others? Every part of you had wanted you to come of hiding and defend the little creature, but your promise to her had stopped you... and no doubt you would've just made things worse.

The way Kyouko's ears had drooped and her tail had fallen slack... it should never stop wagging, like it did when you parted ways yesterday.

Wagging. You smile at the memory. You know that yamabiko aren't canines, but you can't help but wonder if their body language is the same. Was Kyouko happy at that moment?

Your heart skips as you arrive at the front of the temple, but it's not from fear of the tengu and kappa and tanuki and kitsune who are milling there in discrete little groups, slightly apart from the humans who have also just arrived. Your eyes scan the crowd, but you can't see her.

"Ya-**ho**!"

It's a surprisingly loud call, and many of the humans and youkai there stop and look at the direction it came from. You do the same, and see Kyouko running up out of the forest. She's dressed in her acolyte robes like before, but she has a ribbon in her hair as well this time. It's a charming look for her.

When she sees everyone looking at her, her face turns red and she stops dead, but then her eyes fall on you and a beaming smile lights her face.

For a moment you think she must have spotted a friend of hers, the happiness in that smile is so bright, but as she runs up to you it's clear you're the one she's looking for.

"You came!" she says, breathless. "I... I was worried that you were just being polite yesterday. A lot of people find the reciting of the sutras boring..."

You shake your head and tell her that you've been looking forward to it all day. The truth is, you realise at that moment, is that you've been looking forward to seeing her again. But you don't say that, of course.

Your face seems suddenly hot and you hope you're not blushing. Kyouko blinks at you, wondering why you've gone so quiet all of a sudden.

A hush falls across the crowd then, saving you from any further awkwardness. The Lady Byakuren has arrived. She moves through the crowd, greeting people, both human and youkai. You notice again and again that beatific smile of adoration on the faces of not just humans, but tengu and kappa and kitsune alike.

She _is_ beautiful, you admit. You can't help but stare, and you're suddenly worried that Kyouko will be offended by it. But when you turn to look at the yamabiko, you see the same look of love on her face as the others.

Then her eyes go wide.

You turn to find Byakuren right in front of you. She inclines her head to you and smiles.

"Ah, a new face! Welcome to Myouren Temple."

You give a quick bow and stutter an introduction, but Byakuren's smile remains so warm and inviting that the usual wave of awkwardness that anxiety that you usually feel when meeting someone new doesn't eventuate.

Her eyes fall on Kyouko. "So the two of you are friends?"

Kyouko glances at you, and when you nod, she seems suddenly relieved and nods as well, a shy smile appearing on her face.

"It's unusual to see you so dressed up, Kyouko," says Byakuren. "There really is no need, you know. Although many call them concerts, these evenings are really an opportunity for us all to seek centeredness through the sound of the sutras."

Kyouko nods, her hand rising to touch her ribbon self-consciously. But then Byakuren bids you both farewell and is soon mobbed by other members of the crowd.

You notice Kyouko has undone her ribbon and is putting it in her pocket, shamefaced.

You tell her you thought it was really cute.

Kyouko smiles weakly and shakes her head.

"Come on," she says, brightening up suddenly and taking your hand. "The concert's about to start. I know a really good spot!"

Being an acolyte at the temple, Kyouko has inside information and you find a nice little stepped area where a path leads up to a small enclosure of ojizousan. "It's my job to wash them and give them new bibs," Kyouko explains as you sit yourselves down beside them, just as though the little statues were members of the audience.

A hush falls over all those assembled in the temple grounds as Byakuren climbs up onto the porch of the main temple and seats herself in the lotus position. In her hands is that little wooden fish you've heard so much about, and as you watch, she begins to tap at it with a wooden stick, keeping time. Then she begins to chant, her voice surprisingly low as the repetitive monotone of the sutras pours out from her.

It really is the most mysterious thing. You can _feel_ the sutras more than hear them. The words rise from somewhere inside your body, resonating in every part of you, as if your heart is the musical instrument.

Soon you find yourself entering a weird half-dreamy state. You really do feel at peace. Is this the strange power of the sutra? Who knows how long you've been sitting there, listening, feeling every tone echo inside you.

You remember, then, that Kyouko is beside you. You turn to see that she's swaying. Her head falls on your shoulder and you guess, from the soft snoring, that she's just fallen asleep.

The peace that has settled upon you shatters like crystal. With her head resting on her shoulder, you can no longer feel the deep intonations of the sutra; the only thing in your mind is how soft the tufted ear pressed against your neck feels. You grow warmer as the rest of her body leans up against yours, and it's only partly due to the little creature's body heat.

You try to gently slip your shoulder out from underneath her, but when she murmurs and nuzzles back against you in an effort to get more comfortable you decide to give up on the idea. The look on her face is so peaceful, and besides, it's nowhere near unpleasant to have such a pretty girl cuddling up to you, even if she doesn't realise she's doing it.

You relax, and start to feel yourself nodding off as well as Byakuren's monotone voice continues to resonate across the temple grounds. Kyouko's warmth and the clean, wholesome scent of her hair and her clothes also doesn't help.

You think you may have even fallen asleep when Kyouko suddenly jerks upright, waking you. Someone has sat down beside her while the two of you had your eyes closed, a girl around her age in a brown dress , unruly pink hair tufted like feathers under a little round hat. There's a teasing smile on her face.

"Mystia?" murmurs Kyouko, rubbing her eyes.

"I was wondering when you two lovebirds would wake up," says the bird-youkai.

"Lovebirds?" Kyouko blinks and turns to look at you. She gives a little gasp and blushes. "I'm so sorry! Did I fall asleep on you?"

You start to explain that you fell asleep too and that she doesn't need to worry about it, but Mystia interrupts you.

"You both looked so angelic it seemed like a crime to wake you up." She looks out across the temple grounds at all the humans and youkai and snorts. "You know, I think that's why these concerts of Byakuren's are so popular - it gives everyone a chance to catch up on the sleep they've missed."

A group of kitsune sitting on the lawn below turn back to shush the three of you, but Mystia just glares back at them. "Hypocrites," she mutters. "Tomorrow they'll be back to their old games of stealing sake and seducing humans." She stands up and takes hold of Kyouko's hand. "Hey, let's blow this place. I caught a few whoppers a few hours ago and they're sitting there in a bucket waiting to get grilled."

The little yamabiko protests weakly as her friend pulls her to her feet, turning to you, but Mystia just laughs. "Don't worry, your boyfriend can come too." She eyes you up and down. "You look like you could do with a grilled lamprey or two."

"Oh, he's not my boyfriend..." But Mystia is already dragging her away and you decide there's nothing else to do but follow them.

It's a short walk to Mystia's grilled lamprey stand and you find yourself playing third-wheel while Mystia and Kyouko chat on the way.

Mystia suddenly turns to you. "So what's your story?"

Caught off-foot, you're try and explain how you and Kyouko met. Mystia seems amused by your discomfort and she laughs.

"Cute story," she says. "Another human caught by the siren-call of the yamabiko." She digs Kyouko in the ribs. "At least you knew enough to catch a cute one."

Kyouko begins to protest, but then she glances at you and a deep blush settles across her face.

You soon arrive at the stand. It's a tiny little stall on the edge of the road with just enough space for a handful of customers. Mystia has you and Kyouko sit down at the counter while she slips under the tarpaulin at the back of the stand and busies herself with reigniting the smouldering charcoals under the grill with a fan.

Soon there's a happy little fire.

"You guys want a drink?"

You look at Kyouko and the yamabiko nods. "But just a small one," she says.

Mystia pours you a couple of tumblers of what smells like shochu from a big jug behind the counter. You take a sip and it's like drinking rubbing alcohol. Kyouko samples her own and her ears stand up on end.

"It's sour!" she gasps.

Mystia laughs and gets to work preparing the lampreys. They're still alive, and she catches one and then another, nails them to a cutting board and swiftly beheads them with a knife and fillets them. You stare in shock, but when the slices of lamprey are skewered and placed on the grill, the scent of delicious cooking fish soon has you forgetting the gruesome way in which they were prepared.

"Sorry to barge in on your date like that," says Mystia as she applies the sauce to the spitting eels with a brush. "I was looking for you everywhere, and then I realised you were probably at the concert. Have you had a chance to think over my proposal?"

Kyouko blinks at her. "Oh, you mean about starting a band? Well, I don't know..."

"Oh come on," says Mystia. "You've got an amazing voice." She turns to you for support. "She does, doesn't she?"

A few mouthfuls of the shochu has already made you tipsy, and you're effusive in your praise of Kyouko's singing ability. The little yamabiko shakes her head and protests that she's not really any good at all, but the shy smile on her face tells you that she's pleased.

"Her voice _is_ beautiful," Mystia agrees. "But it's more how _powerful_ it is that I was getting at." She flips the skewers of lamprey over and dabs more sauce on them. "Basically, my idea is to start a punk band and to give our _own_ concerts. There's a little clearing just a ways down the road, and humans and youkai pass by all the time - it's the perfect spot to attract an audience."

A punk band?

Mystia nods. "Yeah, well... the way I see it, there's a lot of frustrated energy inside that little chest..." She jabs her fan at Kyouko, making the yamabiko yelp in surprise. "...just waiting to come out, and punk is the perfect way to do that. It's the music of protest and rebellion, after all."

You ask her what Kyouko has to protest about.

Mystia blinks at you. "You're kidding, right? Have you seen how Byakuren treats her?"

Kyouko protests weakly that the Lady Byakuren has her best interest at heart, but you see Mystia's point and nod. But punk? You can't help but wonder if it really is the appropriate style for Kyouko's gorgeous voice.

"You want to hear the song we've been working on?

You nod. Kyouko tries to stop her, but Mystia is already singing.

Mystia's voice is beautiful, but _loud_, and unlike Kyuoko she doesn't seem at all shy about showing it off. The lyrics are hard to follow, but essentially the song seems to be an attack on fickle-hearted girls and is full of strange references that slander both school-teachers and shut-ins alike. Kyouko looks embarrassed, but after Mystia starts poking her wildly with her fan she starts to sing as well.

It's weird, but the two of them really do seem to have a simpatico going. Kyouko's counterpoint helps to take the edge of Mystia's volume and you sit back and actually enjoy the song. Like you expected, it's _Japanese_ punk, which is to say pop masquerading as punk.

There's a sudden smell of burning and Mystia stops singing and in a panic slips the skewered lampreys off the grill and onto two little plates. Kyouko is caught off-guard and continues to sing a few seconds longer, but on her own she seems too shy to continue and her voice fades back into silence as a flush spreads over her face.

Mystia puts the plates in front of you and busies herself with refreshing your drinks. "So, what do you think?"

You say you really enjoyed it, which is the truth, even if you had little or no idea about what the song was rebelling against, and that they're both really talented.

Mystia nods, pleased, and turns to Kyouko. "See? Now your boyfriend's given you his vote of confidence, maybe you'll have the courage to get up and sing in front of others."

Kyouko opens her mouth, seemingly about to protest Mystia's referring to you as her boyfriend, but then she thinks better of it and just nods. Her look of determination is adorable, especially given that her face is still bright pink.

Mystia chuckles and pours herself a shochu as well. "Well, then, here's to Choujuu Gigaku!" She winks at you. "The name of the band. _Dance of Bird and Beast_. Like it?"

You tell her it's very clever.

All three of you click your glasses together and take a drink. You're still not used to the potency of the shochu and you grimace as you swallow, but poor little Kyouko starts to splutter and cough and you pat her on the back until she stops.

She glances up across at you and smiles as she catches her breath. You realise you were a bit forward in touching her, but it doesn't seem like any harm was done. The drinks seem to have removed any of the awkwardness that remained between you.

Mystia recharges everyone's drinks as you dive into the grilled lamprey. It's as delicious as it smells.

And so the three of you, fuelled by Mystia's potent shochu, spend the next few hours drinking and eating and laughing. You learn more about Gensoukyou in those hours than you have in your entire stay here. Who knew the lives of youkai were so similar to a soap-opera!

"...acting all high-and-mighty, jus' cause she's from the moon and purer than all of us Earth-slobs..." Mystia's had a few too many drinks - in fact you all have - and is well into her list of people who've rubbed her the wrong way. You and Kyouko are more than happy just to listen, since Mystia's stories are hilarious. The little yamabiko's face is bright-pink, and not from embarrassment... in fact, she seems to have lost a lot of her shyness. She's been drinking about one drink to your two, and Mystia's three.

Then Mystia's complaints take on a rhythm of their own and before you realise it, she's singing impromptu. Kyouko laughs and claps her hands and she starts to sing as well. She's a little unsteady on the bench, though, and you have to keep grabbing her to stop her from falling off. She doesn't seem to mind; in fact, she scooshes herself closer to you. Her voice fades away to leave Mystia to sing on her own about the lack of appreciation the world has for night-sparrows generally, and she leans her head on your shoulder.

You slip your hand around her waist and she sighs, snuggling into you.

You're so happy in that moment that you don't notice how loud Mystia's drunken singing is getting, or how strange and distorted it's become, like there's a second voice singing alongside it.

Then, suddenly, the lights go out. For a moment you think that there's been a black-out, but it can't be: the lanterns that light Mystia's stall are powered by oil. You open and shut your eyes, but there's no difference at all: an empty blackness is all you can see.

You fidget on the bench and Kyouko immediately notices something is wrong and calls your name. You try to stand up, but being unable to see anything you're disoriented and the next thing you know you've fallen heavily onto your back on the ground.

You hear Kyouko's cry of alarm, and Mystia's singing ceases abruptly.

Kyouko's calling your name, asking what the matter is.

"Too many drinks?" It's Mystia's voice, tinged with drunken humour.

You say you can't see a thing. Damn, maybe it _was_ that shochu! Can't you go blind from drinking dodgy alcohol, like moonshine? But Mystia starts to swear and you feel her trying with Kyouko's help to lift you to her feet.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" she's babbling. "I... I didn't realise I was using my ability while I was singing."

Her ability? What does she-?

"A night-sparrow's song can cause blindness," she explains quickly as she sits you down on the bench and dusts the dirt and grass from your back. "I didn't mean to do it, but I guess I was so drunk I didn't realise I- Oh, I've really screwed things up this time!"

Blind? You mean you'll never be able to see anything ag-?

"Oh no, it's just temporary," says Mystia. "I'm so stupid! So stupid!"

A soft hand falls on top of yours and you immediately start to calm down. So it's just temporary. Thank god!

The hand on yours is rubbing it, and you recognise that warm, wholesome scent that belongs to Kyouko. "Don't worry, don't worry," she keeps saying. "Everything's going to be fine."

As you sit there, rubbing at your eyes, Mystia and Kyouko quickly discuss what's to be done. Kyouko volunteers to take you back home and look after you.

"The blindness will only last for a few hours," she says. "But I can't just leave you there on your own. Something might happen, and then I'd never be able to forgive myself!"

And so that's what happens. Mystia, still apologising profusely, walks with you part of the way and then it's just you and Kyouko. The little yamabiko holds onto your arm and leads you carefully along the path, warning you about stray roots and low branches.

Even though you're blind, you can't help but enjoy Kyouko's company. As you walk along, she tries to take your mind off things by chatting to you about anything and everything. The shochu seems to have loosened her usually shy tongue, much like turning on a tap. You learn a lot more about her, about the other youkai at Myouren Temple and about her friendship with Mystia.

"So..." she says, her voice growing suddenly shy. "Did you really like our song, or were you just being kind? Don't you think it's a bit _loud_?"

You laugh, agreeing that it _was_ loud. But punk _should_ be loud, and that doesn't stop her voice from being beautiful... or Mystia's, you quickly add.

Kyouko falls quiet. You wonder if you've offended her somehow. But then you feel her squeeze your arm, and there's a flash of warm wetness as her lips touch your cheek in a kiss.

"Are all humans from your world as sweet and kind as you?" she whispers.

Your face feels hot and you wonder if you're blushing. You don't really know how to answer her question.

"I guess punk does seem like a pretty strange choice," says Kyouko, changing the subject. "But Mystia is angry about a lot of things and I think it helps her to get it all out."

What is she angry about? you wonder. You tell Kyouko that you didn't really understand the lyrics of their song.

Kyouko sighs. "Mystia's in love with someone, but she's too shy to tell them. And she's worried that they love someone else as well. She's pretty messed up about it."

You say that those kinds of relationships can be pretty heartbreaking.

"The person Mystia loves is a human," Kyouko says, then falls silent again. She's expecting you to say something, so you ask whether there are a lot of humans-youkai relationships in Gensoukyou.

Kyouko shakes her head, forgetting that you can't see anything, but you can feel her doing it since she's so close to you that one of her ears brushes against your shoulder. "I... I think maybe humans are too scared of youkai. But I guess youkai are just as scared of humans. Lady Byakuren often preaches about it. She thinks humans and youkai can be friends. But there's this miko, the miko of Hakurei shrine..."

You know who she's talking about. Reimu. Everyone knows Reimu. She often visits the human village. You've never really spoken more than a few words to her, but it was enough for you to decide that despite her cuteness she isn't someone to be crossed.

"...she says that Lady Byakuren is wrong and that humans and youkai can never be friends." Silence again. "What do you think?"

You say what you think without thinking, that love is one of those things that can cross all differences and barriers, and that you can't imagine why humans and youkai can't be friends.

Kyouko squeezes herself closer to you. "I think so too," she says, eagerly. "I mean, we... we're like friends, aren't we?"

The shyness of her words, the warmth and softness of the little body pressing against yours is really starting to get to you. Friends. You want to be much more than that, you realise now. Every part of you aches to grab the little yamabiko and hug her to you, to properly hold her in your arms. But you don't. Maybe you're just too much of a coward to do it.

You swallow and nod. You say that you'd like to be friends with her.

Kyouko says nothing, but as you continue to walk you feel the soft whapping of something against your butt. For a moment you think Kyouko's patting you there, but then you realise it's her tail, hitting you as it wags back and forth.

You walk the rest of the way in silence. When you reach the village you have to give her directions to find your house. You're staying in the spare room of the village tailor, who lives with his little daughter, and luckily it's not a hard place to find. Since your room is accessible from the back, you don't have to disturb him and Kyouko, after taking your keys and unlocking the door for you, leads you inside.

You're glad that you actually gave the place a bit of a tidy-up before going on your little adventure. You had no idea you'd be bringing a girl back to it. Well, _she_ brought _you_ back, really, but...

Kyouko leads you into the bedroom and you lie back on the bed. In the utter darkness, you have no idea what the little yamabiko is doing, and the silence starts to alarm you.

"Kyouko?"

"Oh! I'm sorry," she says. "I... I was just thinking that this is the first time I've been in a boy's bedroom."

You decide that maybe she's feeling nervous being alone with you, and so you tell her that everything's fine now and thanks her for taking you back home. You feel a bit lame saying it, but it's the right thing to do.

"Oh no," says Kyouko. "I can't leave you alone. What if you need something, or need to go to the bathroom or something like that? I have to be here to help you."

You tell her it's not necessary, but she puts her foot down.

"No arguing," she says. "This is all my fault, so I have to stay and look after you."

You make some weak protest, but inwardly you've happy that she wants to stay. Having to lie here alone, completely blind, is an alarming prospect.

With Kyouko's help, you get into your pyjamas and slip under the covers. She sets up a chair next to the bed. You tell her she can sleep on the bed if she wants to and you can take the spare futon, but she just laughs.

"Don't be silly," she says. "You're the one who's the patient." Then she sighs. 'You know, before I met you I was scared of humans. I... well, when I still lived in the mountains, humans would come and shout out to me. I loved shouting back to them. I know that in the old days yamabiko used to trick them into following us so we could eat them, but that hasn't happened in a long time. They're not really that afraid of us, now. They'd shout out just for fun. But then people started shouting out, well..." Her voice grows soft. "..._lewd_ things, and they'd trick me into repeating what they said. So I decided to give up on it and came to Myouren temple. I thought maybe becoming a monk was the right thing to do. Then I wouldn't be so sad anymore..."

You lie there, listening to her heartfelt words. They've all just started flowing out of her. The sadness tinging her voice is heartbreaking and you reach out with your hand for hers. She takes it and squeezes it.

"Oh, it's okay now. I'm not so sad now. Lady Byakuren is so kind and being an acolyte has really helped me to stop worrying so much about everything. And now, well..." She hesitates. "...now I've made such a lovely friend, I can't be unhappy anymore, can I?"

And yet... and yet there's still sadness in her voice. You wonder what you should say, but Kyouko just pats your hand and says she's going to go get you some water.

You're asleep before she returns.


	2. Chapter 2

Birdsong wakes you. You open your eyes to find the light of day streaming through the open window.

A few moments later you remember last night and a great weight is lifted from your shoulders: you can see again! You jerk up in bed and look around. The bare walls of your humble little room have never looked so beautiful.

Kyouko is there, asleep in the chair she placed next to your bed last night. You lean forward to wake her up, but hesitate. She just looks so peaceful sleeping there. Thinking she doesn't get much rest from her acolyte duties at the temple, you decide to leave her sleep.

Kyouko. The name sets your heart racing now. She's such a tiny little thing, and with her floppy ears and energetic tufted tail she's more than adorable. Your eyes scan her face, from the unruly teal-coloured hair to her snub nose and small mouth, her lips slightly parted to reveal the whiteness of her teeth as she breathes the deep rhythm of sleep.

You've never really noticed before, but she has rather pronounced canines. Well, it's just another thing that makes her seem dog-like. Did beautiful creatures like her ever really hunt and kill humans to eat? You try to imagine Kyouko calling out to a lost traveller, leading him deeper and deeper in the wilderness, finally falling silent to leap upon him from behind a tree and tear him limb-from-limb...

The image is much more disturbing than you expected.

You're still looking at her and wondering when Kyouko stirs and opens her eyes. A bright smile appears on her face.

"You can see again!" she says.

You nod, embarrassed that you were caught looking at her. You quickly thank her for taking such good care of you, but apologise that she had to sleep in a chair.

Kyouko, still smiling, shakes her head, her ears flapping about. "Oh no, I had a wonderful sleep."

You tell her that next time she visits you'll have to insist she sleep in your bed. The words are out of your mouth before you realise what it sounds like. Kyouko blushes hot and you start babbling an explanation, but then she laughs and says that she knows what you meant.

Her blush doesn't leave her face though.

The little yamabiko stretches and yawns lustily. "What time is it?" she asks.

You're not sure, since your room doesn't have a clock - they're rare here in the human village - but it's has to be a few hours after daybreak.

The effect on Kyouko is immediate. She leaps out of the chair, her face a mask of horror.

"I have to be at the temple!" she cries. "Lady Byakuren expects me to begin my cleaning duty at daybreak. Oh, she'll be furious!"

You're out of bed in a second, asking her if there's anything you can do.

Kyouko shakes her head. "No, please... it's not your fault. I'm the one who overslept. I'll just explain what happened. The Lady Byakuren will understand."

She rushes to the door and grabs the handle, but then she drops it, runs back and throws her arms around you and kisses you on the cheek.

"Thank you so much for coming last night. I had a wonderful time." She holds you for a great deal longer than a usual hug requires and when she finally slips her arms from around you she's blushing. "If... if you're not doing anything tonight, would you maybe like to meet me at Mystia's stand again? That is, if you're not busy and if you're not sick of grilled lamprey and..." Her voice dies away. You tell her you'd love to.

Again that beaming smile of innocent happiness. Kyouko claps her hands, but then she frowns. "I'd have to go. See you tonight!"

You wave goodbye as the little creature runs off down the lane. At the end of the lane she stops and waves again, then she's gone.

You return inside, your heart beating a mile a minute. You can still feel Kyouko's embrace, smell that wholesome scent that is uniquely hers. After pulling the chair back into its usual spot, you sit in it and feel the residual warmth of her body.

It's an odd thing to do, but somehow it calms your raging heart.

Everything smells like her.

The day can't go quickly enough. You spend it doing the jobs that earn you your keep here in the tailor's home, but you can't stop thinking about her and hoping she didn't get into too much trouble.

That afternoon, just after lunchtime, as you're walking with the tailor's daughter Eri back from the village's little schoolhouse, the sky turns pearl-grey with cloud and the temperature drops. You hurry home, expecting it to start snowing at any moment. The first flakes come down just as you arrive.

You play with Eri inside for a while and help her with her homework as the snow starts to fall heavier. When her father returns, you make your excuses and leave. It's already starting to get dark and even though it's not too far to Mystia's stand you don't want to leave Kyouko waiting.

As you walk along the path the snow becomes heavier, enough for a thin crust to spread across the ground and crunch beneath your feet. The trees glow dully with a light covering of powdered crystal.

When you arrive at the stand Mystia is already cooking lamprey, and she rubs her hands over the grill to warm them. As soon as she sees you, she smiles mischievously.

"Came back for more so soon? My lamprey does that? Or maybe it's the shochu you're after, or maybe..." Her eyes glitter. "... a _date_?"

You start to shake your head, but stop. Wait. It _is_ a date, isn't it? Organising to meet a girl at a place for drinks - that's the definition of date, after all.

You shrug your shoulders instead and sit down. Mystia offers you some hot tea.

"Looks like we're in for a bit of a flurry tonight," she says, sighing. "The cold is always good for the grilled-lamprey business, but not if it snows too heavy."

You sit there, chatting with her as it grows darker. She puts out the lanterns and lights them. Now and then someone appears on the road, rugged up against the cold, and time and time again you think it's Kyouko, but it never is. After a while you start to wonder where she is.

Mystia is troubled too. "She might have been held up at the temple for some reason," she says. Then she stares at you. "What are you waiting for? Go and get her. You don't want to sit here and listen to me explain how to catch lampreys again, do you?"

You laugh and thank her, promising to be back soon. You get up and trudge your way down the road in the direction of the temple as the snow begins to set in.

* * *

><p>In that thick silence that always seems to settle upon the earth whenever it snows, you finally reach the temple. The buildings seem even stranger in the eerie half-glow of night-time snow, and you feel like an interloper as you make your way to where you met Kyouko the first time. You don't really expect her to be there, but since you have no idea about the layout of the Myouren temple you decide it's as good a place as any to start looking for her.<p>

The temple grounds are deserted and the steadily falling snow deadens every sound as you pick your way through the graveyard. It's only small, given that the temple is only a few years old, but it's still nerve-wracking. And so when you hear someone cough, you almost jump out of your skin.

It came from over there, from the porch of the main temple building. From where you are, you can only see the edge of it, so you move closer. Your heart is pumping in your chest. What if it's one of the other monks? What explanation are you going to give them? That you got lost in the snow? Well, it makes sense, but if it's Lady Byakuren herself, you wonder if she won't suspect that you're up to something, given how close you and Kyouko seemed at the concert.

Another cough. You reach the corner of the building and climb the steps up to the porch carefully, given they're slippery with fallen snow. You duck your head around the corner and see someone kneeling further along the porch in front of tiny brazier flickering with a yellow-red flame. In the dark and with flurries of snow being blown onto the porch itself, you find it hard to make out who it is. But the smallness of their body makes you suspect it's Kyouko.

Then the little figure coughs, and you make out in the mixture of firelight and shadow a tail and what are probably ears. You leave your hiding-place and hurry over to her.

Hearing the slap of your shoes on the wood she turns in surprise. It _is_ her.

"Kyouko?"

Her eyes go wide, but instead of the smile and greeting you were expecting she just looks panicked. She makes no move to stand up but raises her hand and gestures for you to stop, which you do.

"You have to go," she whispers at you hoarsely. "If Lady Byakuren catches me talking to you, then..."

You tell her that when she didn't come to Mystia's stand you were worried that something had happened to her.

Sadness scores the little yamabiko's face. "I... I'm sorry I stood you up. When I arrived late for my duties this morning, Lady Byakuren scolded me and asked me why she should keep me on as an acolyte if I don't take my responsibilities seriously. I tried to explain what happened, but she said it wasn't important."

You ask her if that's why she's sitting there now, whether it's punishment.

Kyouko shakes her head. "Lady Byakuren told me that she'd keep me on as an acolyte if I could prove to her that I was really serious about it. So she gave me the duty of guarding the temple tonight."

But it's snowing, you protest. Surely she can't seriously expect her to...

Kyouko's face takes on that determined look that you saw before. "To follow the dharma, you have to learn to ignore minor things like the discomfort of the body..."

It sounds like Kyouko is just repeating one of Byakuren's teachings, and you flare with anger. Seeing Kyouko here, shivering in the cold with only a tiny brazier to keep her warm while Byakuren is no doubt comfortable inside the temple... You angrily start to protest about Byakuren's hypocrisy, and how Kyouko needs to find the courage to stand up to her.

Your outburst is cut off by a loud "No!" from Kyouko. You step back, horrified by the look of angry hurt on the little creature's face. "You're just like Mystia. You don't understand. Neither of you do! I'm not doing this because Lady Byakuren is telling me to. I'm doing it because I _want_ to!" Tears start to flow down her cheeks and she wipes at them angrily with the sleeves of her dress. "No one thinks I can do anything without someone telling me to. That I'm weak and useless." Her eyes, red and swollen, flash at you. "Well, I'm not! That's why I'm doing this. I have to prove it to myself as well, that I can do it, that I'm not just playing around." She turns away. "Please go. I... thank you for being so kind to me. But I don't need people feeling sorry for me anymore."

You stand there, shocked by her words. You start to say something, but then you just turn and walk away. When you reach the edge of the porch and climb down the steps, you chance a glance back. Kyouko is still kneeling there, staring down at the little brazier. You watch her for a few moments, but she makes no move to look in your direction.

You slink away, burning with shame and frustration at how badly you've screwed things up. You find the path leading back into the forest and take a few steps along it, but find you can't walk any farther. You slump against the trunk of one of the cedar trees and press your head against the bark, feeling your eyes growing hot. Then the tears start flowing and you stand there, not feeling the cold or wetness of the snow and wind, just the painful brokenness of your heart.

After a while you feel stronger, hollow but stronger, and you wipe at your eyes with your hands. You look at the snow-covered path leading into the forest and realise that this time, when it takes you back to the human village, you'll never see Kyouko again. The pain of that thought is just too much to bear. You double back, following the edge of the temple precinct. You just want to see her again. You know it's over between you, over before it even began, but you need to look at her, one last time, so that you can remember her differently from that final look of anger and hurt.

You skirt the main buildings, slipping from tree to tree. You realise your behaviour is that little different from that of a stalker, but with your heart in the fragile state it is you can't be shaken from your resolve.

You soon find a spot on the edge of the forest where you have a clear view of the main temple building. You're far away enough not to be seen, but you can make out a little flickering pinpoint of light and a tiny shadow behind it: Kyouko.

You shiver as the darkness deepens and the snow grows heavier. Even your overcoat is not enough to keep warm. But you make no move to leave. As you stare at the tiny flickering flame of the brazier, you wonder if what you're doing there isn't just your own form of penance. Kyouko is right. You really did think of her as weak, needing to be protected. And yet, she's the one who has been protecting you: first when she saved you from being lost in the forest and then when she looked after you after being struck blind by Mystia's song.

You've been standing there in your vigil for you don't know how long when you hear a sound above you. A mass of snow falls down from the tree you're leaning against and you look up to see Mystia perched high in the branches. For a second you wonder how she got there, and then you remember she can fly.

She spreads her wings and steps off the branch and comes gliding down to land beside you. She doesn't say anything, merely looks out towards the temple following your gaze.

She sighs. "So that's how it is, huh? When you didn't come back I figured something like this must have happened." She looks at you. Maybe your eyes are still red, or maybe you just look depressed, but Mystia places a hand on your shoulder.

"Sharing her vigil, huh. Well, don't beat yourself up about whatever happened. Kyouko may be cute and tiny, but don't let that fool you. Like I said last night, there's a lot of frustrated energy in that chest of hers."

Mystia's words don't make you feel any better. You return to staring at the little brazier.

Mystia sighs a second time. Then she reaches into the heavy overcoat she's wearing and takes out a beanie and some mittens. "Here, you should wear these if you're going to be out here all night. I don't have a brazier in her anywhere, unfortunately, but I do have this." She brings out a little bottle and shoves it in your hands.

It's shochu.

Mystia laughs at the look on your face. "Ah, love!" she says. "It sucks sometimes, doesn't it? Well, I'll leave you to it. Try not to freeze to death out here." She pats you on the back and then with a few strong flaps of her wings she lifts into the air and vanishes behind the tops of the trees.

* * *

><p>After Mystia leaves, time stops having any meaning. The light of the brazier flickers, the trees shiver in the wind, the snow continues to fall, the darkness deepens. And then it begins to brighten. Colour slowly returns to the world. For a while you wonder what the hell is happening, but then you realise it's the dawn.<p>

The dawn? You've been standing there all night?

You struggle to move. Every part of you is aching. How did time pass so quickly? You're pretty certain you didn't fall asleep. Maybe you were in that strange meditative state between waking and sleeping the whole time.

You stretch, muttering at the pain in your muscles, and look out towards the temple in the pale light.

You can see Kyouko clearly now. She's still sitting before the little brazier. Then someone comes out onto the porch from the inside of the shrine.

It's Byakuren.

She puts her hand on Kyouko's shoulder and talks to her. You see the little yamabiko nodding. Then Byakuren helps her to her feet and goes and brings her her broom. Kyouko bows and as Byakuren leaves you see her stretch and hop up and down in the coldness of the morning air.

Then she gets to work sweeping the porch with her broom. You hear her humming, the hum slowly shifting into murmured, half-sung words:

"Gyatei gyatei haragyatei harasougyatei boji sowaka..."

You exhale deeply. She seems happy. You look down at the bottle of shochu in your hand. You didn't touch it all night, but you think you can have a swig now.

The burning liquor flows through you in an instant. You take another swig, and then another. You feel life returning to your frozen limbs.

And yet...

And yet it does nothing for the ice still encrusted around your heart.

* * *

><p>It's a few days later. Time, they say, heals all things, but your heart is still heavy from all that happened between you and Kyouko. The snow didn't set in, and with the sun having returned to the sky the snow-covered forest is a glittering cave of glistening jewels.<p>

You came here to walk in silence and collect your thoughts, looking for some peace, but despite the forest's beauty you find it hard to escape the pain of your failure.

The silence deadens its somewhat, though. The crunch-crunch-crunch of your footsteps, the soft murmur of the breeze setting the branches of the cedars shimmering. If you're going to suffer, better to suffer here, you decide.

You're deep in the forest when you hear a strange sound. With every step you take, the crunch of your feet in the snow seems to double.

Crunch...crunch.

Crunch...crunch.

Someone is out there in the forest, just off the path, shadowing you.

Crunch...crunch.

Crunch...crunch.

"Hello?" you cry out.

"Hello!" comes a voice in return, from far off.

You shiver. Another human? Or a youkai. You start walking again, and this time there's no mistaking the mirroring of your sharp footfalls.

You stop. "Who are you?" you shout.

"You?" returns the voice.

The voice was closer that time, and you realise it wasn't an echo. The voice was feminine, and you feel hope surge up in your chest.

"Kyouko?" you call out.

"Oh?" responds the voice.

"Come here!" you shout.

"Here!" the voice replies.

You step off the path. You walk quickly, eagerly. The crunching of your footfalls is echoed, but the closer you get to the source, the further away it seems to be.

"Kyouko, where are going?"

"Going!"

"Wait for me!"

"Me?"

You're surrounded by trees now. You glance at the ground. There are footprints here, but they're confused, like someone has tried to mask them by walking back and forth. You look around. Every tree looks the same.

In a sudden panic you realise you don't know the way back to the path.

Then you spot something lying against a nearby tree.

It's a broom.

You hurry up to it. It's made of bamboo, the same kind Kyouko uses.

"Kyouko?"

"Kyouko!"

You grab up the broom and follow her voice. It leads you a merry dance throughout the forest, always at a distance, but from the loudness of the echo you decide you must be catching up with her.

You stop again and look around. There, hanging on a low-lying branch, is a large piece of pink material shifting slightly in the wind.

You pull it down. It's a pink dress. From the teal-coloured flower-buttons, it can only be Kyouko's dress.

Her _dress_? What the hell is she doing?

You fold it over your arm and keep going.

"Ya-ho!" you cry.

"Ya-ho!" comes the cry in return, closer still this time.

And there, hanging on a branch.

It's a white under-dress.

You carefully pull it down. It's still warm, and there's the unmistakeable fragrance of Kyouko coming from it. Your face flushing, you add it to the dress hanging over your arm and hurry on, your heart beating rapidly.

"Ya-ho!"

"Ya-ho!"

Her voice is much louder now. You look about, but you don't see anything. There is utter silence here, deep in the forest. It's just the snow and the cedars and the wind and you.

Suddenly, your heart jumps. You remember the time you imagined what it must have been like in the old days, when yamabiko lured humans into the wilderness to devour them. Is she lurking out there, somewhere, hiding? Does she hate you after your falling out, and has led you here so she can take her revenge?

Those pronounced canines...

"Ya-ho?" you call out, your heart racing.

"Ya-ho!"

It's from right behind you. You whirl around.

There's no one there.

But on that branch, swaying in the wind, hard to make out amongst all the snow hanging on the other branches nearby...

White material. A bra, and panties.

You stand there, wondering whether or not you should reach up and pull them down and feeling like a complete idiot, when you catch movement from the corner of your eye.

Just a flicker, from behind that tree.

And again.

This time you caught it. The tip of a tufted brown tail.

There it is again, and again. Appearing from behind that tree, wagging in and out of sight.

You glance at the ground, hiding the smile that's appeared on your face. Then you take a few steps in the wrong direction and call out "Ya-ho!"

"Ya-ho!" comes the echo, but from the opposite direction to the tree with its wagging tail.

So she wanted to creep up behind you and surprise you. You decide to turn the tables.

You wander about as though lost and confused, moving closer to the tree with each step. Then, when you're right next to it, you call out "Ya-ho!" one last time.

"Ya-**ohhh**!" You catch Kyouko mid-cry as you swing around the tree and grab hold of her. She's stark naked.

She gasps and starts to struggle, but you hold onto her, sliding your arms around her waist and pulling her soft, warm body against yours.

"Aren't you cold?" you ask her.

"A-a little," she says, blushing furiously.

"Let me warm you up," you tell her, leaning forward to kiss her.

As your lips touch hers, Kyouko stops struggling and melts into your arms with a sigh. Her tongue comes to meet yours, shyly, tentatively, and your heart aches as you kiss her deeply.

The little minx. You don't know what's going on, but right now you don't care. With her slight body pressed against yours, her small breasts squeezed between you, the rich fragrance of her hair and body everywhere, the delicious heat of her mouth melding with yours, all the suffering of the past few days dissolves away.

You break the kiss, gasping for air, and look at Kyouko with questioning eyes.

The little creature is blushing even deeper than usual. She meets your gaze briefly then buries her face in your chest.

"You stayed out there all night," she says. "Even after I was so mean to you. You waited with me, even though it was so cold."

"You saw me?" You're ashamed of having spied on her, but Kyouko doesn't seem to care.

She shakes her head, her little ears flicking about. "No, I _heard_ you." She reaches up and tugs one of her floppy ears. "These things aren't just for show, you know."

You reach up and stroke them, the top of her head as well. You've been dying to do so ever since you first met her. You're not disappointed. Her ears are warm and fuzzy, and she murmurs in delight at your touch, her tail wagging.

"So you don't hate me?" you ask her.

She shakes her head. "No-o," she replies. She gazes up at you. "I- I really like you."

You kiss her again, harder this time. Then you start to take off your overcoat.

Kyouko's teal eyes go wide, but when you swing it about her shoulders she cuddles even closer against you.

"It's cold out here," you say.

Kyouko nods. "But I don't feel cold here with you."

She closes her eyes and lifts her face. You don't need to be told twice. You lean down and kiss her. This time, Kyouko is less shy and she explores your mouth with a questing tongue. Her hands reach in between you and start to unbutton your shirt.

"Hey, what are you doing?" you ask in mock-protest.

"Don't you think it's unfair for me to be the only one naked?"

Even though she was one who stripped all her clothes off, you decide not to argue with her logic. Soon her hands have slipped inside and she strokes your chest with her fingertips, muttering happily.

"Boys' bodies are firmer than girls', aren't they?"

You take hold of her hands and lower them to your waist. She doesn't need to be told twice, and after a bit of fumbling she's undone your belt and helps you out of your pants.

You guide her onto the ground, laying her down so that the overcoat acts like a blanket, making a nice warm barrier between the snowy ground and yourselves. As you lean over her, you take the chance to let your eyes roam over her body.

Kyouko closes her eyes and turns her face away, the flush on her face deepening. It spreads down her neck to the top of her chest and onto her tiny breasts. They're about the size of rice-bowls and utterly adorable, and you attack them with your mouth, making Kyouko squirm beneath you.

"No, no," she murmurs. "They're... they're too sensitive!"

You decide to be a gentleman and cease your attack, instead letting your kisses and licking tongue slip down over her flat stomach. You pause to dip it into her bellybutton for a moment, making her gasp, and then you're kissing the inside of her thighs.

Soon Kyouko starts to pant and her tail, trapped between her body and the overcoat, struggles to wag. It's a problem you'd never have to deal with with a human girl. You grip her gently around the shoulders and flip her onto all fours so that her tail can wag free.

After all, Nature in its wisdom has already created the perfect position for just this situation.

The view from behind her is so strange and so beautiful. Her rounded buttocks and slim waist, the slender, pale length of her back leading to her narrow shoulders and the graceful arch of her neck are all indistinguishable from a human girl's, and yet there are the delightful additions of her floppy ears that move whenever she turns her head and of course her tail: that adorable tufted tail that betrayed her so nicely before when she was trying to ambush you. It's wagging happily as you slide your hands down the length of her body, making her moan, and when you reach it, you run it through your hand.

Kyouko gasps and wiggles her hips. "Please," she whispers. "Please don't tease me!"

Who can resist such a humble request?

As you enter her Kyouko cries out, and the sound is surprisingly loud, although utterly adorable.

"I'm... sorry...uhh!" she pants. "I... I'm very...loud. I... uhh! That's why I wanted... uh, to make love here I the forest, where no- oh! -one could hear us..."

The lean down over her and whisper in one of her floppy ears that you love the way she sounds. Her voice is beautiful when making love, too.

Kyouko gasps and turns her head to kiss you. As your tongues intertwine in a blaze of heat and wetness, she starts to move her hips back harder and faster. She's obviously no longer content with your slow strokes and has decided to up the ante.

With her tongue sliding against yours, exploring your teeth and palate, her still-wagging tail trapped between the two of you, you lose all control. You start slamming into her and Kyouko cries out over and over, her voice getting louder and louder.

"I.. ah!.. I.. ah! I.. love.. you!"

It's too much for you. Even if you'd wanted to, there's no way you could stop yourself now. You careen right over the edge and cry out as your head splits in two with the intensity of the pleasure exploding throughout your body. There's nothing else, then, but wave after wave of insane delight spreading through you, and above it all Kyouko's high, desperate cries as she climaxes together with you. She collapses forward from exhaustion and you slump on top out of her. The two of you lie there catching your breath, your minds struggling to remember who and where you are.

At last you roll off and reach out for her, still half-blinded by the intensity of your orgasm. You find her arms and slip your own underneath them and around her chest, pulling her tiny body against you. Her head finds the space between your neck and collar and nestles in it, one ear flopping over your shoulder, the other brushing against your lips. You take it into your mouth and nibble it, and Kyouko gasps and slaps gently at your back.

"No, d-don't! I'm... I'm too... I'm too sense... sense..."

Her voice trails away. You guess it's a bit of an accomplishment, rendering a yamabiko speechless.

But you don't have long to feel proud of yourself, for you feel the languor of your limbs spread over your whole body and you yawn, her ear slipping from your mouth, and then you're asleep.

* * *

><p>You're not asleep for long, of course. As soon as the heat of your lovemaking has bled from your bodies in the early winter air you wake up, shivering. Kyouko stirs as you get up and she blinks up at you, confused. Then her mouth opens in an O of surprise and she pulls the corner of your overcoat over her to cover her breast and thighs.<p>

You smile down at her as you quickly retrieve your underwear and slip them on. Then you recover the rest of both of your clothes, handing her her underwear along with the dress and underdress that she'd used to play that wonderful hide-and-seek game with you.

Soon the two of you are clothed again and you sweep her up in your arms. Kyouko still says nothing and just looks up at you, her eyes brimming. You lean down and kiss her gently and she shivers in your embrace.

"Lost your voice?" you ask.

"I'm just too happy," she murmurs against your chest.

You glance down at your overcoat. It's going to need some vigorous cleaning if you're ever going to wear it again, you realise. You'll probably never get Kyouko's smell out of it.

Maybe that's not such a bad thing, after all.

Silence hangs over the crystallised forest as the two of you stand there, hugging, not caring about anything else but each other. But then a drift of snow falls from a nearby cedar with a soft flumph and you both turn to see Mystia standing on a branch high up the tree.

"Hey," she says.

Kyouko gasps and turns on her, her face going red. "Mystia! You... don't tell me you were _peeping_?"

Mystia looks hurt. "Oh, come on Kyouko. I'm a night sparrow, not a tengu. I didn't see anything, although even a fairy could guess what happened." She looks at you and winks, giving you a thumbs-up. "Good job!"

Then it's your turn to blush. You pick up your overcoat and roll it up as Mystia glides down to join you.

"I guess you two could do with some hot tea... and a hot shower, I'm guessing." She grins at Kyouko, who gasps and blushes an even deeper red. "Come back to my place. You'll have to share the hot water, though, since there's not that much of it."

She doesn't need to make the offer twice. The two of you follow her as she leads you through the sparkling, crystalline halls that the snow has transformed the forest into. Kyouko clings to you, her head on your shoulder the whole way.

"Cold?" you ask her.

"No," she says, snuggling closer to you.

You whisper into her ear. "Kyouko?"

She looks up at you. "Yes?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to say your name."

Kyouko smiles and says yours. You repeat it back to her.

"Think I'd make a good yamabiko?" you ask.

Mystia turns around and shakes her head. "Nah, you're not a big enough loudmouth."

"Hey!" cries Kyouko.

Mystia laughs. "And don't get any funny ideas! There's only room in the band for two people. It's _Dance of Bird and Beast_, right? No space for a human." She looks you over. "He can be a groupie, though. Think you're finally ready for the big time, Kyouko?"

The yamabiko nods, and for the third time you see that look of determination on her face.

Mystia is right. There _is_ a fiery spirit inside that little chest of hers.

And you can't wait to see more of it.

The End

Next in the _Touhou Waifu_ Series: _The Love of Your Life_ with Sukuna Shinmyoumaru.


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